


Sins of the Mother

by Jadeqaf



Series: Wild Beginnings Universe [4]
Category: Queer as Folk (US)
Genre: Domestic Violence, Drug Use, M/M, Past Child Abuse, Past Rape/Non-con, Suicide Attempt
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-11-26
Updated: 2019-11-27
Packaged: 2021-02-26 01:14:28
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Rape/Non-Con
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,519
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21575092
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Jadeqaf/pseuds/Jadeqaf
Summary: A phone call brings back painful memories
Relationships: Brian Kinney/Michael Novotny (Queer as Folk)
Series: Wild Beginnings Universe [4]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1053842
Comments: 2
Kudos: 4





	Sins of the Mother

**Author's Note:**

> I started this in 2002. Long before homophobic, right wing assholes decided that gays were the scum of the earth. Long before 17 states, including my own, decided to enshrine discrimination into their state constitutions. I was hopeful that the real life aspects of this story might come true. So now, not only is this universe an AU from the show, it is AU from real life. So, when reading this story, imagine a world where what happened in Massachusetts inspired positive change, not negative. Imagine a world where two men who love each other beyond limits and beyond time can stand up in front of the world and fulfill all the promises they've already made.
> 
> That was my original author's note for this story. it might be a little melodramatic now that the Supreme Court did the right thing but the rise of the right wing sometimes makes me nervous.

Sins of the Mother

22 years from the end of season 2: Four months after Something Old, Something New  
~~~~

"Dad." Gus's worried voice broke through the fog in Brian's head. Gus had walked in five minutes ago, while Brian was on the phone. He'd stood quietly, waiting patiently to announce his presence, but his father had been silent and motionless since hanging up the phone.

Brian turned his head slowly, as if trying to wade through molasses. Blinking, he tried to mask his chaotic and bewildering thoughts. "Hey, Sonny Boy."

Gus was disturbed by the paleness of his father's face and the distance in his eyes. He'd seen the paleness before, usually when reliving painful memories, but he'd never seen that cold, faraway look in his eyes. "Dad, you ok?"

"Sure. What's up?" Brian started to move toward his son, but swayed on his feet. Gus caught him before he fell.

"You are not ok. What's going on?" Gus led his father toward the living room, sitting him down on the loveseat. Satisfied that Brian wasn't going to pass out on him, he walked over to the liquor cabinet and poured two glasses of Jack Daniels. Handing one to Brian, he sipped on the other.

Brian took the glass and drained the contents, feeling the fire burn its way down. It was the only feeling he had. He was numb. He knew he should be feeling something, anything. But there was nothing.

Worried, Gus walked through the house looking for Michael. He knew that whatever was bothering his father, Michael either knew what it was, or would be able to get Brian to talk about it. He found his second father in his office, working on his latest book. Michael had branched out from writing Rage, and was now a best selling author. He wrote whatever came to mind; horror, romance, even mysteries dedicated to Ben. This time it was a fictionalized story of his life. "Pop."

Michael looked up into the hazel eyes of his son. "Hey Gus, what's up?" He didn't like the concerned etched into his face. It never boded well.

"It's Dad. Something's bothering him." Gus barely got the words out before Michael was shutting down his computer and heading out the door.

"Where is he?"

"In the living room. I came in at the tail end of a phone call. When he hung up, he was pale. He didn't even notice that I was there. Then when he did, there was this cold, distant look in his eyes. He kind of wavered a bit." Gus took a deep breath and tried to remain calm. "Dad's not sick is he?"

Michael stopped in the hallway. "What would make you think that your father is sick? Which he's not by the way."

"I don't know. It's just that the phone call really seemed to shake him." Gus didn't bother trying to hide his relief that his father was ok, at least physically. "Like it was news that he didn't want to hear."

Michael started walking toward the living room, but he detoured to the nearest phone. Checking the caller id, he started cursing. He recognized the last number that had called. "What the fuck did the Ice Queen want? Hasn't she caused Brian enough pain?" Before Gus could say anything, Michael was in the living room, sitting down next to Brian.

Brian hadn't moved since Gus left the room. The now empty glass was still clutched in his hand. He felt Michael pull him into his arms and the ice melted. Tears started streaming down his face and he held on to the one constant in his universe.

Holding tight to the man he loved, Michael looked over his shoulder and whispered to Gus. "Call Justin." Gus nodded and left the room.

Brian clung to Michael as a drowning man clings to a life raft. Now that the ice was melting, that was exactly what he felt like. That he was drowning in emotions that he'd tried to bury for most of his life.

Gus quietly slipped back into the room. This wasn't how his visit was supposed to go. He had news, wonderful news. And he'd wanted his fathers to be the first to hear. He was close to his mothers, but he had a special relationship with Brian and Michael. He'd been able to talk to them about anything, things that he couldn't talk to his mothers about. Michael had taken him to the doctor when he'd gotten his first, and last, sexually transmitted disease. Then they'd sat him down and had a very long talk about safe sex. When he'd stumbled into their house at 4 am, fifteen and drunk off his ass, they'd held his head while he threw up, and then lectured him about drinking responsibly. He'd learned that he could yell and scream at Brian all he wanted, but Michael was to be treated with respect. He'd learned that he'd rather have his father yell at him than to see hurt or disappointment in Michael's beautiful brown eyes.

It hadn't been easy, growing up the child of four gay parents. There had been fights at school, homophobic parents of friends, and the whispers in the hall. Teachers had often asked him to not mention his extra parents, to just say that his parents, Lindsay and Brian, weren't together. But Gus had refused to lie. He had two mothers, Melanie and Lindsay Peterson-Marcus; and two fathers, Michael and Brian Novotny-Kinney. And they would just have to deal with it. He usually took pity on them though and didn't mention the other members of his family.

Gus's reverie was interrupted by a knock on the door. After a quick look at his fathers, he went to let Justin in. "Hey Uncle J." In spite of his worry about his father, Gus had to smile at Justin. Always a good looking man, being in love made him glow. "How's Hank?"

"He's fine." Justin smiled at the thought of his lover, his life. "I'm glad you called though, we have a house guest for a few days." Justin's smile faded.

"David?" Gus had finally heard the entire story about Michael, David, and Portland. It had taken all of Justin's persuasive charm to convince him to leave it be. He'd finally had to resort to emotional blackmail, but Gus had backed down.

"David. I must really love that man to put up with his father. He dropped by unannounced. Again. I think he keeps showing up hoping to hear that Brian and Michael have split up." Justin kept his voice low, knowing that Brian didn't need to hear that piece of information. "Now, what's up with Brian?"

"I don't know." Gus filled Justin in on what he knew, which wasn't much. "Then Michael checked the caller id. When he saw the number, he swore and asked what the Ice Queen wanted. Who's he talking about?"

Justin sighed heavily and ran his hand over his face. The Ice Queen. "Joan Kinney." Walking away from a stunned Gus, he sat down on the other side of Brian, who was still wrapped around Michael, drawing in his strength. "Hey Superman. How's Lois?"

Brian pulled away from Michael and turned his head to look at Justin. "Fuck you Sunshine. I am not Lois. And I'm fine. What are you doing here?"

"Can't I visit my best friends, my nephew, and hide from my father-in-law?" Justin kept his tone light, but he was shocked by the pain radiating from Brian's eyes. He hadn't seen Brian in that kind of pain since the night Michael had overdosed on heroin, more than twenty years ago.

Brian scowled. "David's in town?"

"Yes. And no, we're not having a dinner party this time." Justin shuddered at the memory of their last dinner party for David. He'd almost come to blows with Brian. Brian had shown remarkable restraint in the four months since he'd found out about Portland, as long as David refrained from touching Michael. But David seemed to have a problem remembering that Michael was off limits. David had accused Brian of being a jealous fuck who didn't trust Michael. And it had deteriorated from there. Hank and Justin had learned their lesson. David and Brian were not to be in the same room, ever.

"Good. Now, do you want to tell me the truth about why you're here?" Brian was rapidly rebuilding his emotional defenses, the few he had left. Loving Michael had demolished most of them. But some were older then their friendship and were impervious to Michael's loving touch.

"I had Gus call him." Michael spoke for the first time. "I saw the number on the phone. What did she want?"

Brian sighed, knowing that he couldn't evade, Michael would just get him to talk anyway. "It wasn't her. It was Claire. Joan's dead."

Michael and Justin moved as one to embrace Brian. His relationship with his mother was non-existent; as far as anyone knew, Brian hadn't even talked to his mother in at least ten years. But Justin remembered how devastated he'd been when his mother had called, telling him that his father had died. It had been fifteen years since he'd had any contact with Craig Taylor, but his death had meant that there would be no reconciliation.

"Baby. When?" Michael gave what comfort he could. Brian didn't deal well with grief under the best of circumstances. He'd been almost inconsolable when they'd buried Vic; he'd stayed in bed for a week, and when they'd lost Ben, he'd stayed drunk for three days. But when it came to his family, Brian's reactions were unpredictable. And likely to inflict severe damage on the world around him.

"She had a stroke a month ago. Claire tried to call me at the office, but I refused to take her call." Guilt overwhelmed Brian. He should have at least found out what his sister wanted.

"Brian, you haven't talked to either of them in a decade. You didn't know." Michael held tight to his other half. He could almost feel the anguish mixed with anger that coursed through Brian.

"I know. But I should have known that Claire wouldn't call me unless it was important."

"Did she leave a message with Cynthia?" Brian shook his head no. "Did she keep trying to call?" Again, Brian shook his head. "Then you had no way of knowing that she wanted anything more than money." Michael tried to get Brian to realize that he had nothing to feel guilty about. "Did Joan come to our wedding, either of them? Did we get an invitation to John or Peter's graduations?"

"No." Brian's voice was small and quiet.

"And do you remember what happened before our second wedding?" Michael knew that he was bringing up painful memories, but he knew he had to remind Brian of just why he hadn't seen his biological family in a decade.

Gus's breath caught at the sheer pain in his father's eyes. Even when Brian had been reliving the beginning of his relationship with Michael, he'd never seen his father's eyes hold that much pain.

Brian had tried hard to put all that behind him. And it usually worked. But the news that his mother was dead, making their estrangement permanent, had shaken him more than he'd expected. "Believe me, I remember vividly."

Gus hesitated before asking. He knew that he probably should know what happened, but he'd been so self-involved at the time that he had missed that their wedding was a renewal. "What happened?"

Justin had to laugh at the cautious tone in Gus's voice. He'd learned the hard way that asking questions about the past usually brought up painful memories. But this time, he was off the hook. He was only asking about something that was already out in the open, not opening the can of worms himself.

Michael and Brian exchanged glances, asking and answering a question without words. At Brian's small nod, Michael sighed heavily. "Gus, have you ever wondered why you have had no contact with any of your biological relatives?"

"I know that Mom's parents refused to help when she married Mama. They said that it wasn't a real wedding and they didn't acknowledge me as their first grandchild. I know that both of Dad's parents were alcoholics." They'd told him about Jack and Joan's drinking problems while he nursed his first hangover. They'd wanted him to be careful.

Brian curled into Michael's arms. He knew that he would need all the strength hidden in his compact body in order to get through this. "Add religiously fueled homophobia, and that's Joan Kinney. After Pop died, her drinking increased, then she found out that I was gay. Oh boy did that send her into a tailspin. Add to it that I'd told Pop before he died, and Claire always knew. I thought she was going to have a stroke right in the hallway to my loft."

"How did she find out anyway?" Gus laughed at the blush that covered Justin's face.

"Well, ah, um. Shit Brian, help me out here." Justin's face got redder and redder. He could discuss his sex life with Gus for hours, but not when it concerned Brian. Anytime the topic would come up, he'd turn bright red and stammer.

Brian laughed. "Justin and I were in bed, Joan starting banging on the door and wouldn't go away. I let her in and Justin walked out of the bedroom wearing only his pants, asking me if I was coming back to bed."

Gus laughed at the embarrassment on Justin's face and the amusement on Brian's. "Oops."

"Yeah. Anyway. After that, I rarely saw her. I invited her to the wedding only because Michael made me. He told me that I had to at least make the effort. Of course, she didn't show. I would visit her about once a month. She refused to acknowledge Michael, and I still hadn't told her about you."

"She didn't know about me?" Gus was surprised to realize that he was hurt by that.

"I did it for you. She was ruthless to me; I would not let her pour her venom over you, especially when you were too young to defend yourself. Then came the day that changed everyone's lives forever."

~~~~

Ten Years Earlier

"Michael!" Brian burst through the door yelling for his lover. "Hey Mikey. Where the hell are you?"

From the top of the stairs, Michael swore. "Brian, you interrupted me. I was finally passed that damn writer's block. What's wrong?" Michael knew that whatever it was that had Brian so emotional couldn't be bad; the smile on his face was too big.

"Come on." Brian held out his hand for Michael, and then led him into the living room. He searched frantically for the remote, finally finding it shoved into the cushions of the couch. Brian turned on the TV, and then changed the channel to CNN. "Look baby!"

Michael stared at the TV in shock. The image on the screen refused to compute. It was impossible. "When?"

"The decision was announced today." Brian's voice was quiet, but full of emotion as the anchor kept talking.

"The landmark decision by the US Supreme Court makes the United States the last industrialized nation to legalize marriage between people of the same sex. This isn't civil unions or a domestic partners registry, this is marriage. Legal, binding, and as easy as heterosexual marriage."

The ringing of the phone pulled Brian's attention away from the set. "Hello. Yes Justin, we're watching CNN. I don't know, we haven't talked about it. Defiantly. We'll see you there." No sooner had Brian hung up then the phone rang again. "Hey Em. Yes we're watching it now. We haven't... Oh you are? Why am I not surprised. Yes, we'll see you at Woody's in an hour."

Tears flowed down Michael's cheeks. He'd never thought he'd live to see this day. "Brian."

Brian walked over to Michael and pulled him into his arms. "I know. I love you."

"I love you too." Michael regained control of his emotions. This was a day for celebration, not tears. "So, I'm assuming that every fag in Pittsburgh is gathering on Liberty Avenue as we speak."

In answer, Brian changed the channel to the local station. They were reporting live from Liberty Avenue. "Oh my god."

Michael stood in shock and embarrassment as a very familiar voice echoed out of the speakers.

"It's an absolutely wonderful day. My son can finally legally marry the man he's loved since he was 14. They've been together for 10 years. Now they can have the same rights that I do." Deb's grin shone bright, even through the screen. "Michael, get your butt down here. We're having a party."

"Ma."

"Shall we take her up on her invitation? Justin, Emmett, and Ted are going to meet us at Woody's. I'm sure Vic, Lindsay, and Melanie will end up there soon." Brian wanted to celebrate. Finally, people were going to have to recognize his relationship with Michael for what it was, a marriage.

"Let me save my work and I'll be right back down." Michael bounced up the stairs. He couldn't believe it. It had to be a dream.

Brian watched Michael run up the stairs and laughed. Even at 41, Michael still retained that childlike enthusiasm.

They couldn't park anywhere close to Liberty Avenue. The atmosphere was more festive than any Pride celebration as Michael and Brian made their way into the diner. Michael opened the door and smiled. "Hey Ma."

"Baby!! Can you believe it?" Deb left the celebration to hug her sons.

"It's amazing." Brian hugged Deb tightly, and then swung her around.

"Put me down. Just because I'm skinny doesn't mean you can manhandle me." Deb had worked hard over the last ten years to lose weight and get in shape. She was now the same size she was in high school. She'd stopped wearing the wig three years after Michael and Brian's wedding, preferring her own blond hair. But she still wore outrageous t-shirts and more gay pride buttons than any queen on the avenue.

"Yeah, we'll leave that to Carl." Brian smirked while setting Deb down on her feet.

"Brian, I don't want to hear that." Michael playfully whined. His mother was delirious happy. She refused to marry Carl, preferring to date him. "We're heading toward Woody's. Do you want to join us? Boy Wonder and Temmett will be there."

"Let's get out of here." Deb followed her boys out of the diner, heading for their friends. "So, have you two set a date yet?"

"Ma, what are you talking about?" Michael knew exactly what his mother was talking about, but wanted to see her get worked up. When the Supreme Court agreed to hear the case, he'd sat down with Brian and discussed what they would do if they won.

And Deb didn't disappoint. "You two are going to renew your vows and be legally married, aren't you?"

Brian joined Michael in winding up his mother. "Why? You and Carl aren't married. And it's been legal for you to do that for centuries. Why should we rush off to get married just because straights say we can? Michael and I know what our relationship is. We don't need a piece of paper to validate it."

Deb's face went red as she tried to find the words to yell at Brian and Michael. But what she was going to say was lost in shock as she saw what was happening outside Woody's.

Michael and Brian stopped in amazement. "Brian, what the fuck is wrong with people? Can't we celebrate for one day before the homophobic bigots of the world descend on us?"

In stark contrast to the festivities around them, a small group of people were picketing on the sidewalk, blocking the entrance to the bar. They carried signs denouncing the decision as an abomination and a sin against God. The cops were trying to get them to move away from the entrance so patrons could enter the club, but they weren't moving.

Justin walked up to Brian and Michael. "Look, why don't we go to the diner? We can hang out there until the morons leave." Justin tried to turn Brian around.

"Sunshine, what is wrong with you? You're going to let those assholes run you off?" Deb couldn't contain her surprise that Justin was willing to back down. However, once she scanned the protestors, she understood perfectly. "You know, Justin's right. Let's go someplace else."

"No." Brian wondered what had come over Justin and Deb. He'd never known them to back down from a fight. Arm in arm with Michael, he headed toward the entrance, intent on pushing his way through the crowd. Then he saw why Justin and Deb had been so willing to look the other way. Standing not five feet in front of him, carrying signs that read "Burn in hell fags" stood his sister and his mother.


End file.
